And Then My Worlds Collided
by onceuponacriminalmind
Summary: Starting when Emma rings the buzzer for Mr. Gold's son's apartment and continues on to the chase through NYC as in the 2x14 "Manhattan" promo and sneak peek. What happens when Emma catches up with Mr. Gold's son? She never in a million years expected to see him again; she never expected her worlds to collide. **Epilogue has been posted**
1. Chapter 1

**Hey there everyone! I recently changed my pen name from swon023633s to onceuponacriminalmind so it is now the same as my tumblr url :) Please feel free to follow me there! I love hearing from you all.**

**Anyway, here is a little story I have done in about 3-4 hours so it is hot off the press, but I wanted to post it before tomorrow's big episode! WHO ELSE IS SUPER STOKED?! Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! It's based off of 2x14 "Manhattan" promo and goes on the assumption that Neal is Baelfire. It starts just as Emma is ringing the buzzer to the apartment in the sneak peek extended scene. I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

"_UPS package for 407."_

It may have been 10 years, but he could recognize that voice anywhere. She was here. She was downstairs, and as much as he wanted to buzz her up and let her in, he knew he had to run from her once go of the intercom, he looked around the apartment for some sort of escape.

"_The window it is then,"_ he thought throwing on his jacket. He had been quite the escape artist back in the day, but it had been years since he had had to climb out a window. Pushing all of his weight onto the rusty ladder, Neal winced as it made a loud grating noise; there was no way she hadn't hear that. Quickly climbing down, he heard the sound of the building door slam open and saw a flash of blonde hair. Jumping the few feet left to the ground, he landed and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction without looking back.

HONNNNNNNNK! He was dodging people and cars, keeping up his speed. New York was not a city that was made for an easy getaway. If the swarms of people didn't block him, there was always the threat of a rogue taxi mowing him down. Chancing a glance behind him, Neal saw Emma jump swiftly over the chain link and dodge the cars almost expertly, keeping her speed as well. Spying a corridor up ahead, he decided he would weave through there and try to lose her; he had lived in the area for almost a decade, there was no way she would keep up.

"OOF!" A man grunted as Neal smacked into him, but he didn't have the time to apologize if he wanted to avoid being caught. Turning left and then right, and then left again, he no longer heard the rapid sound of feet hitting pavement behind him but he kept going none the less. He figured he would run for a while longer, and then find somewhere to stay for a few days, just in case she decided to stake out his place.

Suddenly, he felt something smash into his side and he was flying face first to the pavement in front of him. Flipping in the air and landing on the cool wet surface with an appropriate groan, he kept his gaze to the ground and pushed himself up on his knees, giving one last effort to hide himself from her. As he heard her pants however, he suddenly worried that she may be hurt, and that worry for her was always going to be stronger than any fears he may have.

Slowly raising his gaze, Neal saw her lying on her side, her gaze toward the pavement and her body rising up and down as she took in laboured breaths. He knew he should run; leave before she looked up and saw his face, the face of the man who had abandoned and betrayed her all those years ago, just like her deadbeat parents. _No!_ He had done her wrong once, he wouldn't do that again. All this running and hiding that he had done for years, she was the only person who had ever made him feel whole. She had travelled all the way to find him, chased him down through the streets, and blindsided him, and now here they were with no more than a few feet between them. He was done hiding; he would not be a coward. Holding his breath, he waited as Emma's gaze caught his, her panting stopped abruptly, and her eyes grew wide in shock.

"No..." she said in utter disbelief as she started to shake her head as she stared at the man before her.

"_I'm not having drinks with you. You might be a pervert!" she exclaimed. Out of all the cars she could have picked, this one happened to have the owner in it.  
_"_I might be a pervert, but you're definitely a car thief," the man smiled smugly from the back seat._

_Throwing the map onto the bed, her turned to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her closer to him.  
_"_Whatever spot you pick...is our home." he stated matter of factly. He wanted to start anew. Wanted to begin his life and settle down.  
__Closing her eyes with a smile, she hesitated before confidently placed her finger on the page and decided on their future.  
_"_Tallahassee."_

"_Is this what you really want?" She asked, worried that perhaps this time, their crazy plan may be pushing things too far. It was one thing to go to another state, it was a whole other ball game to move to another country and change identities.  
__Moving their foreheads to rest on each others, he brushed his nose against hers and whispered,  
_"_What I really want is you."_

_Walking back out towards the gate of the cell, she turned around to see the young girl still staring at her hands.  
_"_Well, when you get out, you'll have a car," the Warden stated as she calmly placed the keys back into the yellow envelope, "...and a baby. Congratulations."_

_Hook turned to her with stare of puzzlement.  
_"_For someone who's never been in love, you're quite perceptive aren't you?" he asked with a slight nod.  
__Taking a deep breath, she thought of him. The plans that they had made that day in the motel, the promises in the park, and everything she had wanted with him for their future together.  
_"_Maybe I was...once."_

"Wh-wha..NO!" she shouted as she rose, still not taking her eyes off of him (somewhat out of shock, and somewhat because she found that she couldn't look away).

"How the hell? Wh-I don't. You-. N-Neal?!"

Tilting his head in an apologetic way, Neal extended his hand in her direction before clenching it so that his knuckles almost turned pure white.

"Emma, I know this is-" he started as he took a step towards the women. Bundled up in her jacket and red scarf, she looked so small and afraid until she too took a step back, keeping the distance between them.

"DON'T," she deadpanned as her eyes broke out of their reverie. She straightened her stance as she rose to point a finger right back at him.

"I don't know what the hell is going on here, Neal, or whatever the bloody hell your name is, but I can tell you one thing: I am not talking to you." Shock started to dissipate and was now being replaced by hot seething anger that was causing her blood to boil over. Staring the man down for a moment longer, Emma turned from him and began to briskly walk in the other direction. There was a lot of shit Emma Swan had dealt with in her life, but this was not something she was prepared to do, nor did she ever want to have to.

"Emma, please listen to me!" Neal begged as he grabbed her arm and stopped her from going any further. The next thing he knew, Neal felt the sharp sting of a hand hit his cheek, whipping his head to the side.

"Get you're hands off of me! Don't you dare touch me you son of a bitch!" Emma shouted in fury as she ripped her arm out of his grasp as he covered his cheek that she had struck. She hadn't hit anybody in quite a while, so the blow she had delivered was making up for lost time.

Smirking as she began to see the faint red marking of a fist start to form on the man's face, she continued, "You even think about grabbing me again and I will give you another punch to match that one!"

"Just let me explain, Emma! I can explain everything," he pleaded, placing his hands in front of himself in an attempt to shield himself in case she decided to punch him anyways. Neal knew Emma could pack a punch, but he had never actually been on the receiving end of one before. He suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for all those men he had seen Emma beat up those times a theft had gone awry.

"Let you explain?!" she exclaimed. "What's there to explain, Neal? How you set me up for the watches? How you let them lock me up in jail? How you left me all alone while you were God knows where with just a fucking car waiting for me when I got out? No, there's nothing to explain. I went over every possible explanation in my mind while I looked in Tallahassee just hoping that maybe you were there, and you know what? After 2 years, the explanation that I came to was that you are an asshole; simple as that."

"I know you think I set you up Emma, but I had no choice! I never wanted to leave you! When he told me that you were thrown in jail, I wanted to turn myself in and get you out. It should have been me in jail, not you and I'm so unbelievably sorry that I wasn't there for you when you needed me."

"You're damn right it should have been you. For the record, I never needed you. I was completely fine on my own before I made the stupid ass mistake of picking the wrong car to steal."

Neal's eyes flashed with hurt at her words. He knew she was lying, they had both needed each other, they had loved each other, but it didn't mean hearing those words didn't feel like a knife in his gut.

"And he who? Who told you I was in jail huh?" she questioned, sincerely interested in how he had found out about her time in lockup.

Taking a deep breath, Neal answered, "August. He followed me that night after I left you in the car and gave you the watch. He told me if I really loved you, that I had to do right by you and let destiny take it's course." Shoving his hands into his pockets, he shuffled back and forth on his feet realizing just how stupid that sounded.

"August? As in August W. Booth?!" Things were getting more and more complicated by the second for Emma. "How the hell does August have _anything_ to do with you and I? How do you ever know him? And why would you believe anything he said that night?!"

"I didn't know him. I mean, we kind of, well we kind of grew up in the same...area so to speak." Neal was stumbling over his words, but he didn't want to give too much away about himself in the process of explaining things to Emma just yet. "He told me how you were the "saviour". He showed me something, something from my past that I thought I had long gotten rid of, but the past has a way of, well creeping on us I guess."

"Damn straight it does." Emma emphasized, as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Wait, the "saviour?" You know about the...and you and August grew up in the same...but he's from..." Realization suddenly dawned on her, and it was then she remembered who she had been sent to chase down and who had _asked_ her to chase him down.

"You're..You're Gold's son." she barely whispered as once again the tide of her emotions turned from anger, back to disbelief and shock. "Oh my god...Oh my god" she repeated as she began to shake. He was from the Enchanted Forest. He had somehow gone through a portal to the real world. He knew about the curse. Neal is Henry's father. Neal is Gold's son. Neal is _Baelfire_. _Baelfire is Henry's father._

"Who's Gold? Whoa, Emma! Easy, easy!" Neal stretched out his arms to hover around her just in case her knees gave way. He didn't want to preemptively grab her and risk being punched again, but if she was going to collapse, he would catch her in time.

"I'm fine. Just give me a sec," she reassured as she bent over with her hands on her knees and sucked in breathfulls of air. Once she got her hands to stop shaking, she collected herself and stood fully.

"Rumplestiltskin."

Neal's face drained instantly.

"Ex-Excuse me?" he stuttered, hoping that he had heard her wrong.

"Mr. Gold is Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin is Mr. Gold. And you are his son, aren't you?" Emma asked, although it was really more of a statement than a question.

Now it was Neal's turn to be in shock and disbelief. How did Emma know about his father? He had never mentioned his past to anyone, and now in the span of a few minutes, he was experiencing flashbacks to the most painful moments of his past he had ever endured. All he could do was stare at Emma with his mouth agape and slowly give a simple nod.

"You know I'm the saviour Neal. You know about the curse, so you know that I broke it. Regina, well the Evil Queen, she made it that everyone's memories were forgotten and was brought here to a land without magic. When I broke the curse, everyone got their memories back, and one of those people was Rumplestiltskin. I owed him a favour, so he asked me to help him find his son, but never in a million years did I ever think that would turn out to be you."

"So, you came to New York to find Baelfire...not me." he uttered with resignation and a hint of disappointment. He had briefly thought she had come to find him: Neal Cassidy. Perhaps wanted to talk things out after all this time? No, that was naive and crazy to think. She hated him, and rightfully so.

"Well, I did find you. You're Baelfire; and you're Neal. And I'm Emma Swan, just a girl who got thrown into the role of a lifetime with parents who are heroes who fight dragons and ogres. I didn't ask for any other this. We just got on a plane, and wound up at your apartment."

"We?" Neal asked, looking around him, "You mean, he's with you?"

"Well, yeah. He told me to chase after you so I did, but he really wants to talk to you," she responded. Honestly, at this point, she could care less if he came back to talk with her to talk to Gold, but she also knew that crossing Gold would fair badly. _Very badly._

"Not a chance in hell! There is no bloody way that I am talking to him!" he shouted forcefully.

Emma figured getting Gold's son to talk to him would be difficult, and the fact that she personally knew how stubborn Neal could be was not adding to her optimism.

"What happened between the two of you?"

Neal sighed, "He left-"

" ?" Gold's voice suddenly echoed between the corridor walls.

"EMMA? Where are you?" Henry's call followed after. She had lost track of time and they must have started to search for her when she hadn't returned.

"That's Gold." Emma stated as she turned back towards Neal. She purposely left out an explanation of the other voice, not ready to open up that can of worms.

"Ms. Swan? Are you here?" Again, Gold's voice sounded, only this time closer to the pair.

Looking at the woman he had loved so much, Neal shut his eyes and tried to decide. He wanted to stay to talk to Emma and find out everything, but he just couldn't face his father. He opened his eyes and noticed a necklace that Emma was wearing.

"Go Neal. Get out of here." Emma commanded sternly. She would tell Gold that she had lost track of his son, after all, he had magic so perhaps they could try again another day. She couldn't risk Henry meeting Neal.

"Emma," Neal started, walking towards her, fear of being punched be damned. "Emma, I can't face my father right now, but I do want to talk to you. Meet me tomorrow at the Four Seasons at 9am, please. Please Emma."

It was all too much. She could hear their footsteps now. One more turn and Gold and Henry would see him.

"Neal, I don't-"

"I'm glad you kept the keychain, although I really think it's much prettier as a necklace." Before Emma could register what he was talking about, Neal smiled (that reminded Emma of the first time she had met him) and turned quickly ducking into another alley and out of sight.

Grasping her necklace, she had about 3 seconds to catch her breath as she turned to see Henry bound up to her with Mr. Gold hobbling behind.

"There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you! Did you find him?" Henry asked, looking behind his mom.

"No, uh...I lost him. He ducked into this area and I've been searching the stores but couldn't find him. Sorry Mr. Gold., I guess your son is harder to track than I thought."

"Well Ms. Swan, it seems that you need to brush up on your skills then, doesn't it?" he snarked. "I have the globe back at the hotel. We'll try again tomorrow, it's getting too late now. This area seems fairly uncivilized after hours so I suggest we head back."

Nodding in agreement, the three began to walk back. They were all tired and hungry from the long day and it was rather dangerous to be on the streets this late. As they strolled the street, Emma couldn't help but glance back into the corridor, pondering everything that had happened, and what she had learned.

"Mom? You okay?" Henry asked with a look of concern.

She was starting to get used to being called "Mom", and even though it was still a big adjustment, it warmed Emma's heart to hear him say it every time he did. Looking down at her son, Emma couldn't help but smile.

"Ya kid, I'm good. How about when we get back to the room, we order some burgers and fries? Sound good?"

The look of concern was completely replaced with the widest grin she had ever seen on her son's face as he exclaimed, "That sounds great! I'm starving! Maybe we could order some pumpkin pie for desert?"

Emma grasped her son's small hand and squeezed it gently while she touched her necklace before readjusting her scarf to recover it.

"Sure Henry. Pumpkin pie for dessert."

* * *

**There it is folks! I hope you enjoyed reading it and I apologize if Emma seemed OOC. I just had a wild idea from the promo so I thought I'd give this a shot since I have a week off of school. If anyone is interested, I do have a little epilogue in mind so I will probably be posting it later in the week, but I would love to hear if you are interested in reading that. PLEASE leave a review/comment because I love reading them and getting feedback from you all! Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and let's hope that OUAT doesn't kill us ONCERS with feels with this episode! :P**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hands up if you loved "Manhattan"! *raises hands as high as possible* :)** **Personally, I loved the episode even if it was obvious who Baelfire was. Either way, I thought the way they did the whole reveal with Henry and Rumple was well done. **

**Thanks to all your lovely reviews, here is the epilogue for this one-shot. I know it goes against what really happened, but I couldn't just end it without letting you all know if Emma decided to meet up with Neal. I must apologize for any spelling mistakes/grammar errors that are in either of the two chapters (I did both in the wee hours and my spell check can only do so much lol). I hope you all enjoy reading!**

***I do not own Once Upon a Time or any of the characters**

* * *

"_Emma," Neal started, walking towards her, fear of being punched be damned. "Emma, I can't face my father right now, but I do want to talk to you. Meet me tomorrow at the Four Seasons at 9am, please. Please Emma."_

She had been tossing and turning all night, replaying what Neal had said to her over and over in her mind. In a span of less than 20 minutes, her life had thrown her yet another curveball, shattering what she had thought she had known. It wasn't enough that a son she had given up for adoption 11 years ago showed up on her doorstep on her 28th birthday; it wasn't enough she saw a man she had begun to fall for die in her arms, and it wasn't enough to find out she was the daughter of Snow White and freaking Prince Charming. No, life had decided to destroy the good memories she had had of her past. The only man she had ever truly loved was in fact the son of Rumplestiltskin.

Lying on her back, staring at the hotel room ceiling, Emma sighed. It was too much for one person to deal with! Normal people didn't have to deal with this sort of stuff, but of course she wasn't exactly normal. Turning her head, Emma glanced over to see Henry sleeping peacefully beside her. She had never paid too much attention to it, but he really did look like the perfect mix of Neal and herself; sometimes the way he smiled at her...it reminded her of those times when Neal would smile and look at her like she was his whole world.

As her eyes began to tear, Emma looked to see the clock that read 6:00am. Deciding she needed some air, she pulled back the covers trying her hardest not to make an sudden movements that would wake her son. Readjusting the blankets so to cover Henry up, Emma stroked his hair before walking out onto the balcony. Her life had changed so much in a year. She had always feared that one day the child she had given up would come looking for her, discover just how broken she really was. At 18 she had not been ready to be a mother, to take on the responsibility of caring for another person, especially all by herself. Now, here she was willing to do anything to protect Henry and keep him safe no matter the circumstances.

Staring out into the New York streets, Emma once again began to replay the previous day's events back in her mind. _Neal was Rumplestiltskin's son_. _Baelfire is Henry's father._ That was why she had told him to run back in the alley. It was almost a blessing that Neal didn't want to talk to his father, it saved Emma from having to tell him about Henry. She knew it was wrong, Henry deserved to know the truth about his father, but she wasn't ready for that. He had broken her heart and made it so that she learned never to trust anyone ever again.

Emma was absentmindedly playing with her necklace, as she always did when she was in deep thought when she remembered what Neal had said just before he left,

"_I'm glad you kept the keychain, although I really think it's much prettier as a necklace."_

It had thrown her off guard. She wore the necklace everyday so she always forgot that she was wearing it, but he had surely noticed. After all, he was the one who gave it to her. Taking a deep breath, Emma continued with her thoughts as the sun began to rise over the line of sky-rises. Neal had asked to meet her at 9am. She had less than 3 hours to decide what to do. Should she go to the Four Seasons? _NO! _He had broken her heart, he was a liar, why should she give him the decency he never gave her? On the other hand, she had so many questions about how much he knew, and perhaps seeing him one last time would give her the closure she had never received.

"Mom?" a voice suddenly sounded, jolting Emma from her tranquil surroundings. Turning around, she saw Henry in his pajamas, rubbing his face and squinting his eyes not accustomed to the brightness of day. "What are you doing out here? Everything okay?"

Smiling at her son's worried tone, Emma replied, "Everything's fine, kid. I just couldn't sleep. Somebody kept hogging all the covers." Giving her son a playful wink to indicate she was only joking, Henry chuckled as he made his way to her side, placing his arms on the railing and looking at the view.

"So this is New York, huh?" Henry commented, craning his head as hard as he could in both directions in order to see as much as he physically could.

"Mhmm. Not exactly Storybrooke is it?" Emma smirked. Being such a small town, Storybrooke didn't even have a formal transit system, here in New York transit was a way of life. "I bet you've never seen this much traffic in your whole life, kid." she continued.

"Nope. Mom wasn't allowed to go across the town line, so Storybrooke was all I ever knew. That is until..."

"Boston." Emma finished, looking down at Henry with a knowing glance. Not many 10 year olds would have the courage to leave home and cross states in order to find someone. While it was hard to be mad at Henry for having done so, Emma couldn't be too upset because it had brought him to her.

"What about you? Is this your first time in New York?" Henry asked, hoping to gain a little insight into his Mom's past. He knew she was guarded, but perhaps the fact that she had just got up would play into his favour.

Knowing what Henry was trying to due, Emma decided to indulge him, "No, I've been here a few times, never for more than a few days though. Every once in a while I'd have to find someone, and for some reason people think moving to one of the busiest cities will help them stay hidden." Emma wrapped her arm over the boy's shoulders and pulled him into her side.

"Kind of like Baelfire?" the boy questioned in innocence.

Blinking a few times, Emma pulled back in shock, but finally shrugged and scoffed. "Yeah, I guess so."

"But you'll be able to find him. It's what you do best, just like Gramps and Gran!" Henry stated enthusiastically with a smile.

_Damn, there it was again. The smile that reminded her so much of Neal._

"I guess it must run in the family then, since you also found me." Emma returned with a smile of her own. _I'm so glad he did_.

At that statement, Henry's eyes grew wide. "Oh yeah!" he shouted, happy that he found something else besides hot chocolate with cinnamon that he could attribute to his inheritance. Wrapping his arms around his mother's waist, the pair stayed wrapped up in an embrace for a few moments before Emma realized they had been on the balcony for quite some time.

Suggesting that he go and try to sleep for a little while longer while she took a shower, Henry released his grasp on her and began to walk back through the sliding balcony door. Just as he was about to enter the room, Emma called out to him.

"Henry?"

"Yeah?" he replied looking back at Emma, noticing her watery expression.

"I-I'm really glad you showed up, in Boston I mean." she clarified, trying to get out what she was trying to say. She really was not good at this sort of stuff, but she would learn. "I'm really glad you found me."

"Me too, Mom."

Henry's little figure had barely made it through the doors before Emma couldn't contain her tears any longer. Wiping away at the wetness on her cheeks, she ran her hands through her hair and composed herself before making her way back into the room.

After mulling over her possible options in the shower, Emma knew what she had to do. Gold was going to be at her door at 10 am demanding that they resume their search for his son, and Neal had asked to meet her at 9. She had to hurry if she was going to pull this off. Quickly drying herself and washing up, Emma threw on some clothes and walked into the bedroom where Henry had fallen asleep once again.

"Henry! Henry wake up!" She commanded, shaking the little boy with just enough pressure to get him to open his eyes.

"Wha-? What is it? I thought you said I could sleep? Is Mr. Gold here? Are we going searching again?" Henry asked groggily trying to figure out why his mother was awakening him.

"No, it's not Mr. Gold. I need you to get up and get dressed."

This was not going to be easy.

* * *

Neal had never expected to see Emma ever again. Of course, he had told August to send him a message when the curse had been broken, but that hadn't meant he was ready to go looking for her. It was clear to him that she had a full blown hatred for him, and he really couldn't blamer her. He had abandoned her, just like his own father had and he hated himself for it. Those years that they had spent running around together, stealing from families and convenience stores, he knew how much Emma had wanted to find her parents. As much as it pained him to leave her, when August had came to him that night revealing her destiny of being the "saviour", he knew letting her go would finally give her the best chance to find her her yesterday had brought back all the feelings for her that he had spent 11 years trying to suppress.

When she had revealed that his father was the reason for her being in New York, he panicked and could only think of getting as far away as possible from that man, but seeing her wearing the keychain, it had to mean something. So, he had asked her to meet him this morning. He wanted to ask her what had happened after the watch incident, find out what she had done after, and what her life was like now that she had her family.

Stepping out of the elevator at exactly 9am, Neal took a shaky breath and clenched his sweaty palms. He was beyond nervous. He just hoped Emma would give him the chance to into the hotel restaurant, the hostess looked up at him awaiting for him to say something.

"Um, good morning. I'd like a table for two for Neal Cassidy please?" Neal stated unsurely.

"Right this way Mr. Cassidy, your party has already arrived." The hostess replied as Neal obediently followed.

Ever step he took felt like his feet were turning to lead. As the waitress stopped and gestured to the table just ahead of him, Neal thanked the lady and turned back to the table. He suddenly felt the blood drain from his face and the world turn upside down.

"You!" Neal managed to utter in disbelief. He was dressed in a black pinstripe suit that made him fit into the New York business scene and was using a cane to support his weight, but there was no mistaking who he was. It had been centuries since he had actually seen him last, but every night just before he fell asleep, he still saw the same cowardly man dressed in rags that let his arm go as he fell back into the green abyss. The memory haunted his dreams and was a constant reminder of just how alone he was in the land without magic.

"Bae..." Rumplestiltskin whispered as his eyes began to water. "You came! My boy, look how big you've grown! Please, sit down Bae," he requested as he gestured to the empty seat across from him.

Standing stunned in his place, he began looking around for any sign of Emma. Quickly realizing she was not there, Neal rushed towards his father, slamming his hand on the table in rage.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER? WHERE IS SHE?!" Neal shouted, not sure if it was fear or anger that was causing his outburst of emotion. She had said she owed his father a favour, made a deal to get him to talk to the man, and he knew more than anyone making a deal with the Dark One was a dangerous situation.

"Bae, please! Keep your voice down!" Rumple whispered fiercely. People had started looking over at the pair, wondering what all the commotion was about. "What are you talking about? Where is who?"

"EMMA! I know she made a deal with you, now tell me where she is!" Lowering his voice a tad, Neal was still towering over his father who was nearly shrinking into the chair that he sat.

"Ms. Swan? What does it matter Bae? Please sit down so we can talk." He pleaded with all of his might.

Neal gave the man a disgusted look. "You think I don't know what's going on, hmm? What the Dark One is capable of? You found out I was supposed to meet Emma here and got angry didn't you? You got angry that she lied, did something to her and then decided this was your chance to meet me, wasn't it!?"

"No, Bae I did no such thing! Ms. Swan and I merely had an agreement. Now please, sit dow-"

"I am NOT sitting down to talk to you! Now tell me, WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER!?" Neal seethed placing his hand on the table and the other hand on the chair trapping his father in his place.

Startled at his son's demeanor, Rumple answered without hesitation. "Nothing, I swear! She came to my room telling me that she had found out where you were and that I was to meet you here at 9 o'clock! I left the hotel and came here straight away after that. I did her no harm, I assure you. What does Ms. Swan have to do with you?" Puzzlement began to fill the older man's mind. There was no way his son would have so much emotion over a women he had never met, unless...

"You know each other, don't you?" he questioned accusingly. Seeing the change in the man's face, Rumple knew he was correct. "How do you two know each other?"

Moving so that he was standing straight and no longer trapping the Dark One in his place, Neal took a step back. "That's none of your business. You lost the right to know my business the moment you abandoned me. I have nothing to say to you. We're done. Tell me where I can find her."

When his father said nothing, Neal shook his head and shrugged holding his arms out in a dismissive act, and began to walk away from the table. Hearing his father calling his name and the sound of a chair being pushed back, Neal kept walking away. He had to go find Emma and make sure she really was alright. As Neal entered the lobby, he heard the Dark One's voice ring out from behind him.

"They're gone son, they left as soon as she told me where you were."

Coming to a halt, Neal turned around to see the man walking towards him, limping even with the assistance of his cane.

"They? Who's They? Emma and who else?" he questioned. Did she have someone with her? A boyfriend? Was she married?

"Henry." Rumple answered simply, "Her son. She said that she had fulfilled her part of the agreement and that she was heading back to Storybrooke immediately, that there was no reason for her to stick around."

"A _son_? She has a son?!-Wait. How old is he?"

"Yes, a rather intelligent young man. Reminds me of you when you were his ag-"

"How old is Henry?" Neal demanded once more, his hands beginning to shake.

"He's 11, why?" Rumple asked before noticing the colour began to drain from his son's face and ran his hands through his hair in distress. Suddenly, it dawned on him how he and Ms. Swan had been acquainted. Before he could say anything, the pair was interrupted by a stout man in a suit.

"Mr. Cassidy? So sorry to interrupt, but this was left for you at the front desk." The concierge handed Neal an envelope and left the men in silence. Looking down at the envelope, Neal saw that his name was written on it, and he knew it was from her. Quickly ripping it open, he pulled a piece of paper out and began to read.

"_Neal,_

_You know more than anyone how hard I searched to find my parents growing up. I don't know what happened between the two of you, but I know that he sure as hell wants you back in his life. Whether you choose to do so is your decision. _

_I'm sorry I didn't meet you. Seeing you yesterday brought back all the painful memories and heartbreak that you caused me those years ago, and I don't know if I'll ever be able to forgive you for that. You let me go to jail, and abandoned me when I loved you. Believe me when I say that if I had known you were Gold's son, I never would have come to New York in the first place. I don't know if I can believe that us meeting 11 years ago was just a coincidence, but I guess it doesn't matter now. I'm over it and have learned to move on. _

_Emma_

_PS- I kept the keychain, as a reminder to never trust anyone."_

He re-read the letter 3 times over before slowly folding the letter back up. Noticing the envelope still had some weight to it, Neal tipped the envelope on it's side until he felt something land in his hand. Looking down, he saw her keychain necklace staring up at him. Closing his hand around the pendant, he silently shook his head. He had a son that she had never planned on telling him about. If he had known, he never would have left her, no matter what the damn wooden puppet would have said. He was not going to abandon his son the way he was abandoned.

"Bae?" Rumple asked cautiously. Finding out you have an 11 year old son was not an everyday occurrence. "Son? Please say something to me?"

Moving his gaze away from his hand that was clenching the pendant, Neal looked into the eyes of the man he had grown to hate with a look of determination.

"Take me to Storybrooke."

* * *

**And there you have it folks! I hope you all enjoyed reading the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Especially because this story does not follow the show/is behind the show event wise, I will say that this story is complete and probably won't have a sequel about Neal arriving in Storybrooke, but stranger things have happened. I never thought I would be a SwanFire/SwanThief shipper after falling in love with Graham and Emma but it's happened. I can't wait to see how the show deals with the whole Neal situation, but it's sure to be interesting! **

**Once again, thank you for all your kind reviews that you have left. I read each and every one and cherish them all! If you have the time, good or bad, anonymous or not, please leave a word about this piece because your feedback means so much to me!**

**Until next time!**


End file.
